|
Our
Chapter
Our chapter is named for the wife of Revolutionary
War
General Arthur St. Clair. Phoebe Bayard was born into wealth
and
after marriage the couple moved from Boston to a 660-acre estate north
of Ligioner, PA. After General St. Clair's war service, the
couple lost their home, mill, and land, and later lived in a small cabin
on Chestnut Ridge. Arthur St. Clair died August 31, 1818,
followed by Phoebe just 18 days later. Both are buried in St.
Clair Park in Greensburg where a monument erected by the
Greensburg Masonic Fund marks their graves.
During the formation of the chapter a name was debated. When
it
was suggested that since the DAR is a woman's organization it would be
fitting to use the name of a woman who was undoubtedly as much a patriot
as her husband, Phoebe Bayard's name was chosen.
When the National Society was formed in the 1890s there were about 125
"real" daughters still living whose fathers served in the war.
The Phoebe Bayard chapter welcomed three of those women who
were
then in their 90s into membership. The chapter marked their
graves to signify their status.
|
